


Lullaby

by blackcoffeeandteardrops



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, and that's pretty much it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2019-04-18 12:14:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14212941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackcoffeeandteardrops/pseuds/blackcoffeeandteardrops
Summary: Post series fic in which everything is (mostly) perfect, and where everyone gets to know each other a little bit better.





	Lullaby

**Author's Note:**

> You know those stories that rot your teeth? This is probably one of them. Not technically tied to any other stories, although I guess you could say it falls in line with my last one, Learning How to Bend. All you need to know is this is set far enough down the line that Mulder and Scully's new bundle of joy is about to make her presence known, and that everyone (William included) have feelings about it. Thanks for reading!

In retrospect, Scully knew she should have seen this coming. Despite a rocky start, her pregnancy had been relatively normal. The morning sickness lasted longer than she would have liked, and she was out on light duty earlier than she might have wished, but thanks in large part to Kersh’s placing she and Mulder on suspension that hadn’t exactly been a problem. After talking everything through, their plan had been to give up their lives as agents altogether, choosing instead to go other routes. She was brushing up on recertification courses although she wouldn’t need them for a while, and Mulder had accepted a few requests for guest lecturing rather than dodging them like he used to.

He hadn’t wanted to accept this request with her due date around the corner, but she’d insisted there were a few weeks left and that she knew how to get ahold of him should anything happen. It helped that the school was little more than ninety minutes away, and he could get there fast if the need arose.

The whole pregnancy had been fine. Scully had found an OB they’d not just checked but double and triple checked, using sources outside of the FBI to verify she stood up to the standards they required. Given her history, Mulder knew she was right to be cautious. True to his word, he’d been there every step of the way. She’d caught him up before the sun painting the room they’d selected as the nursery, and had it not already been clear, she’d realize then and there he was just as dedicated to the new child growing inside of her as she was, pouring whatever energy he had into it, perhaps in an attempt to make up for having missed so much of this the last go around.

They’d held onto each other while walking through Ikea and picking items out that months ago might have been a sore subject, a sad reminder of what was once lost. Once, she thought, because despite everything life had thrown their way, William--or Will as he asked them to call him, because Jackson wasn’t who he was anymore and William seemed too formal--had slowly but surely carved out a place for himself back in their lives. He started coming around to the house for a few hours at a time, always needing to borrow something or ask for something to eat, but staying under their roof for one night turned into two and then a week, and while he still took off for a day or two without saying anything, he more than made up for it whenever he came home.

Home, Scully thought, dropping a plate she’d been cleaning into the sink of soapy water. She gripped the counter, breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth. The pain low in her abdomen had started early that morning, subsiding just as soon as it started. With Mulder out of town, she didn’t want to call him back and risk worrying him for nothing, so she’d spent the morning lounging on the couch, propping her feet up as she dozed off to the sounds of daytime TV. It happened only once again after that, a subtle reminder that the little one inside her was preparing to make their entrance, but it wasn’t enough to trouble her.

“Whoa,” William’s voice called from beside her. “I came down to get something to drink, but you--”

Had she not been in pain, Scully might have laughed at the way his hands fluttered from her shoulders to the small of her back, recognizing that she needed help but unsure of how to provide it. “I’ll be fine, it’s probably just a false alarm.”

William stood next to her, taking in the way she squeezed her eyes shut, gripping the edge of the sink so tight her knuckles turned white. He’d been with them for a few months now, so it wasn’t like he was entirely a stranger, but he didn’t know how much of a say he got in all this. They’d carefully tiptoed around references to his own connection to the baby, not wanting to make him feel uncomfortable, until the week before when she must’ve shifted downward and Scully said something along the lines of “you’re sister’s giving my bladder a harder time than you did.”

“Really, Will, it’s okay,” Scully insisted, though she reached out for his arm before he could back away. “Can you help me back to the couch? I’ll leave you alone after that.”

“You’re not bothering me, you know,” William replied, waiting until her grip on his arm was secure before starting to move back towards the living room. “You guys, like, let me move in here without question. The least I can do is make sure you’re okay. Do you want me to get you some water or anything?”

Scully winced, shoving one of the throw pillows behind her back for better support. “Water, please.”

William hesitated, furrowing his brow as he watched her attempts at getting more comfortable, and then turned to get her the requested water. He came back a few moments later to see her face much more composed, with her head tilted back and her eyes closed. “I was just up in my room watching a movie. I could move it down here if you wanted.”

Scully rested a hand atop her abdomen, rubbing at the spot where her unborn baby girl was jutting out what she believed was her heel, and she smiled. She opened one eye and shook her head as she looked back at William. As much as it warmed her heart to hear him offer, she was honestly looking forward to a few minutes of rest by herself. The moment would soon come when that rest was hard to come by. “I appreciate it, Will, but now that I’m feeling better, I think I’m going to take a nap. I doubt I’d be good company.”

William stared at her for a second, dubious, before shrugging and heading for the stairs. “Well, if you need me, you know where I’ll be.”

Scully nodded, taking a sip from the water he’d brought her and pressing the cool glass to her cheek. She put the glass on the end table and then settled back into the couch, intending on getting some sleep. As it turned out however, any attempts at sleep would be short lived. Her eyes bolted open as she felt pressure in her lower abdomen, followed by a pain that was far too sharp for her liking. As far as she could tell, her water hadn't yet broken, but Scully couldn't pretend any longer that she didn't know what was happening. The baby was coming, whether they were ready for her or not. Reaching for her cell phone sitting on the coffee table was a struggle, but eventually she was able to grab it and key in Mulder’s number. “Come on, pick up,” she whispered. She hated the idea of bothering him, especially when he was so far away, but she didn't want to take any chances.

Mulder's phone rolled over to voicemail, causing Scully to groan, tossing her own against the couch cushions. The pain had temporarily subsided, but Scully knew it was only a matter of time now before it happened again. She cast a glance in the direction of the stairs, unsure of how he'd take it but also knowing that without Mulder she didn't have any other viable options. “Will!”

William appeared less than a minute later, brushing the hair from his eyes as he took in the sight of her pained expression. “What can I do? Is it time?”

Scully winced, trying her best to keep her breathing steady. “I think so,” she replied, knowing she needed to try her best to remain composed if she were to ask this of him. “I need you to go upstairs and grab my purse. My keys are inside. I need--”

“You can't drive like--” William paused, his eyes widening for second as he realized what she was asking. “Oh. So you want me to drive you? Do I need to pack you a bag? Aren't you supposed to have like a bag of clothes or whatever when you go to the hospital?”

Scully shook her head, pulling her lip between her teeth. “It's already in the trunk. Will, I’m sorry, but can you hurry? Please?”

“Right, yeah. I’ll...be right back,” William replied, glancing once more at her before dashing upstairs for her purse.

On their way to the hospital, Scully called Mulder several more times, leaving him a message and finally deciding to text him where they were headed. She knew he couldn’t be lecturing the entire day, but she also didn’t know his exact schedule, so she pressed her head against the window and prayed he’d manage to get a break in between classes to check his phone.

William changed lanes, tightening his grip on the wheel as he risked a glance over at her. She hadn’t made any strange faces and she hadn’t yelled out, but he still wasn’t sure if that was a good sign. “How are you feeling?”

“Okay,” Scully replied. At the moment, it wasn’t entirely a lie.

“Sure you are,” William mused. Maybe it was odd they could joke at such a moment, but he knew as well as she did how much of a miracle it was that they’d gotten here. While the visions had ceased months ago, other abilities still remained. He hadn’t impersonated anyone ever since the fateful day on the docks, at least for any length of time, but a part of him considered flooring it and putting on the face of some officer on the way to an emergency should they get pulled over. He looked over at Scully in the passenger seat, thinking better of it, at least for the time being.

By the time Mulder called back, Scully was already admitted and put in a room for monitoring. She cradled the phone, telling him to be careful, all the while knowing he was likely breaking so many speed limits to get to the hospital quicker. “Just hold on,” she said, sighing slowly. While rationally she knew there was no holding the baby back when she decided she was ready, the last thing she wanted was for her to get there before Mulder was there to witness her birth.

“What was it like?” William asked, smiling weakly as he saw her jump. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you.”

“You didn’t bother me,” Scully insisted. She reached for the cup of ice chips at her side, relishing in the cool relief it brought her. “I was just thinking your father needs to hurry up and get here. Although historically, we haven’t had the greatest timing where these things are concerned.”

“You’re talking about when I was born?” William asked, although he already knew she was. He shifted in his seat, pulling the chair closer to her bed. He pulled one of his legs into the chair, propping his chin on his knee.

“Yes,” Scully replied. While they’d spoken of their shared history during the months after they’d reconnected, they had yet to speak much about how he actually came to be. William knew he’d been loved, and the circumstances that warranted his adoption were dangerous, and for a while that had been enough. The curiosity lighting his eyes was proof positive for her that she’d now have to delve deeper into the story. “Well,” she said, chewing on another ice chip. “You were born in Georgia.”

“I was?” William asked, unable to hide the surprise in his voice. He’d seen flashes of his birth in his visions, of Scully and a dark haired woman, and he’d heard crying which he figured was his own.

Scully nodded, gripping the cup of ice tightly in her hand as she waited for another round of pain to subside. “Yes,” she said, glancing at the clock on the wall before looking at him. “Do you remember what we’ve talked about? About how dangerous it was then?” she asked, waiting for his nod before she continued. “Shortly before you were born, it became clear that we needed to get away in order for me to have you without anyone trying to harm us. We formed a plan, and it was Agent Reyes who ended up driving me to a secluded area in Georgia where we could hide out until it was safe.”

“But I guess that moment never came?” William asked, realizing perhaps a beat too late that he’d spoken the question out loud. He knew he’d lived with her for nearly a year and that for most of that time it had been safe, so in truth he’d only been referring to the circumstances surrounding his birth. Still, references to what he now knew was a difficult decision for her weren’t easy to process, and he wasn’t sure if they’d ever be. They were family now however, he knew that, and so he leaned forward in his chair, intent on learning more. He watched as her face contorted in pain, and carefully pressed a hand to her arm. “Do I need to get the doctor? I just saw a nurse walk by, I can--”

“No, no,” she said, laying her free hand atop his. She waited for her heart rate to return to normal and looked up at him, offering a smile. “This is all a part of the process. Babies come when they want to,” she said, sheepishly glancing at him.

“I wasn’t born at a hospital then, was I?” William asked, suspecting by her tone that the answer was no.

Scully laughed at that, the sound bubbling out from her lips a bit louder than intended, though at the moment she couldn’t have cared less. She had to admit that, while circumstances weren’t entirely ideal--she checked the clock again and debated calling Mulder to get an update on his whereabouts, thinking better of it because she didn’t want to risk a wreck while he was driving--the idea of soon having both of her children and her husband in the room with her was something she took comfort in. William’s poking at their history was something she long ago knew would happen, and she hoped not for the first time that it would feel less painful the more they talked about it. She took in the way he anxiously bounced his leg, clearly eager to move but hesitant to leave her side. “There is one thing you can do. Can you go downstairs to check if your father is here yet? You guiding him back here might spare some poor nurse from facing his wrath for not pulling up the details fast enough.”

If William sensed it was a ploy to get him out of her hair for a minute, he didn’t show it. “I’ll be back. Just,” he said, trailing off as he pointed a finger in her direction, mouth poised to speak but thinking better of it. “Just...I’ll be right back.”

Not long after Mulder arrived, Scully was whisked into delivery. The process wasn’t fast, but before long she gave birth to a happy (and healthy, judging by the high pitched cries that echoed through the room) girl. Mulder had apologized for taking so long, but cradling their new child in her arms, Scully insisted that it didn’t matter. He’d managed to get there in time, and that was what counted.

“She’s got your nose, Mulder,” Scully said, laughing as she traced it with her fingertip.

Mulder reached out, feeling his stomach flutter as his daughter’s tiny hand curled around his thumb. “But your coloring,” he mused, swallowing as he glanced back up at her. “I guess that runs in the family.”

At that, Scully looked up, furrowing her brow as she scanned the room. Since they’d moved her to a private suite she’d seen William briefly, but had been more occupied on bonding with the new baby than keeping an eye on his whereabouts. “Where did he go?”

“He bummed a few bucks off me and said he was going downstairs for a bite to eat,” Mulder replied with a shrug. “Although I get the feeling he also just wanted a few minutes,” he continued. He didn’t want to dampen the mood, but he was also pretty sure similar thoughts were going through her head.

“Today’s been a long day for everyone,” Scully mused, pressing a kiss to the soft skin of her daughter’s face. She adjusted the pink cap on her head and smiled, sniffing as she fought to control the well of emotions she felt churning inside. “I forgot they made hats this small.”

“You still have a few from when William was a baby, don’t you?” Mulder asked, thinking of the boxes that had been carried into the house after the years they’d spent stored in Maggie’s attic. At her nod, he carefully sat next to her on the hospital bed, placing an arm around her shoulders. “He wasn’t this little, was he? She’s like a doll.”

“He was,” she replied, her voice little more than a whisper. Since William had barrelled back into their lives, they’d made attempts at getting to know him better and in turn hopefully letting him know them as well. Still, until more recently, the subject of his time under their care had been carefully avoided, for fear of pressing too much too soon. They had made it clear he was welcome and that he always would be, but as Scully felt the baby squirming in her arms, she felt a lump growing in her throat at remembering the times she’d held William at this stage. Giving him time seemed like a good idea, although she couldn’t help wishing he knew how far their welcome for him extended. Yes, he knew she loved him and yes, they’d gotten past the awkward beginning stages of their newfound relationship, but she wondered if she’d ever stop feeling as if she was walking on eggshells each time they happened to be in the same room.

As if he’d heard her--and, Scully thought upon seeing his face smile meekly from the doorway, perhaps he had--William knocked softly before slowly entering the room, careful to not shut the door too harshly behind him. “I, uh, sort of got something when I was downstairs,” he said, pulling a small vase secured with a pink ribbon containing tulips from behind his back. He held it out, not exactly shaking but not holding it steady either. “The gift shop didn’t have a lot that looked good, and balloons didn’t seem right. The pink ones are for good wishes, and the white for innocence. Purity, I guess. I don’t know, I just thought it was good for...her,” he stammered, awkwardly placing them on the table at Scully’s side before stepping away and focusing intently on his shoes.

Scully looked to Mulder, her mouth hanging open, but when he didn’t speak she cleared her throat and waited until William looked up at her to say anything. “They’re beautiful, Will. Thank you.”

William nodded, feeling a bit out of his element but also grateful his gift had the intended reaction. His first week’s living under their roof hadn’t exactly been easy. They’d had to work through a lot, had to fight for trust on both sides, but he knew now how much she cared for him--how much they both did. He still didn’t understand everything about why he could do the things he could, and what purpose his abilities served, but the more time he spent around them, the more he started thinking that even if it didn’t all make sense, his abilities weren’t all bad. Before he had a chance to contemplate it further, he heard Scully calling his name. “Sorry, what?”

“I asked if you wanted to hold her,” Scully replied, gesturing to the now awake baby in her arms. He’d been supportive in the weeks leading up to her giving birth, had jumped up to clean the kitchen after dinner or down to the basement to take care of the laundry, but William had never outright voiced much of an opinion about the situation. She hadn’t wanted to push the issue, and if he didn’t want to hold the baby she wasn’t going to force him, but if this was going to work, she at the very least wanted to try.

William risked a glance, appearing vaguely interested, but he jumped back at hearing the baby whimper. An image flowed through his head unbidden of a hotel room months ago, and of him jutting his head out just so in an effort to cause severe pain if not worse on those intent on capturing him. Since the night at the docks, they hadn’t heard a word from the soldiers who’d tried hunting him down, and he hoped that wouldn’t change. Still, he could do things no one could explain in ways that didn’t make sense, things that admittedly scared him at times. If he was careful and if he kept his cool everything would be fine, but what if the time came when he couldn’t control it? Rationally, he knew it was all nonsense and he knew he was fine, but he still had to fight to tamper down the doubts he felt stirring inside. “I don’t want to hurt her,” he said.

“You’re not going to,” Mulder insisted, hopping up from his position at Scully’s side. He rounded the bed, taking hold of William’s shoulders, only having to push a little to lead him to a chair where he could sit comfortably. “Babies aren’t scary,” Mulder replied, raising his eyebrows in a silent question to Scully before carefully lifting his daughter from her arms. His daughter, he thought, feeling himself get a little choked up. In spite of all the crazy things that had happened in the years leading up to this moment, Mulder stared lovingly down at his little girl’s face before focusing back on William, and he felt grateful for it. “Do you want to try? You don’t have to, but you can if you want.”

“Sure, I guess,” William replied, shifting so he could rest his elbow on the arm of the chair, thinking the position might be more comfortable for holding her. He still didn’t know if him holding an actual baby was the brightest idea, but they both seemed okay with it and if he was being honest, he was curious.

“Just make sure you support her head,” Scully said, carefully watching as Mulder lowered the baby into William’s arms. If she could have frozen time, she might have considered saving this moment.

“Hey, kid,” William said, laughing nervously as he softly cradled her head like Scully asked. “She’s lighter than I expected.”

“Yes, she is,” Scully agreed. She looked to the flowers and then back at them. “How did you know that, Will? What you said about the tulips?”

“When I was a kid, my mom worked as a florist for a few years,” he said, risking a glance up at her as he spoke. She didn’t begrudge him calling his adoptive parents mom and dad, because to him that’s still who they were. “We had to move. I was at the shop one afternoon when she was working with a pretty difficult customer. The lady started calling her a liar, saying she was manipulating the prices and didn’t know what she was doing. I saw she was getting upset so--” he paused, uncertain of how much he should reveal. Bits and pieces of his childhood had been doled out over the past few months, both from their careful prodding and from his simply wanting them to know, but he still felt afraid of letting things they might not approve of slip. “I...sort of made the vase the lady was holding break. Water got all over her shoes, and apparently they were super expensive or whatever. There was no way to prove it was me, but--”

“But they moved away with you before anyone could figure it out,” Mulder surmised, slowly nodding as he took the story in, mulling it over. If the tables turned, he knew that he and Scully likely would have done the same thing. It didn’t matter where they lived, so long as they were together.

“Yeah,” William replied. He shifted his attention back onto the baby who was apparently content in his arms. His sister, he thought, just as he felt a flicker of something tickling the back of his mind. As he looked down at her, he knew it was impossible but wondered if the feeling had come from her. Then again, he wondered, maybe the whole abilities thing ran in the family, although he figured it was too soon to tell. He tightened his arms around her, feeling an odd sense of protection wash over him, and coughed as he looked back up at Scully. “What did you guys name her?”

“We’re not completely decided on that yet. There’s a few we’re debating, but right now it’s Olivia,” Scully replied, her focus landing on the infant’s face. She remembered staring at William as a baby, having already decided on the name before he was born but wondering if it would fit, not knowing at the time that for years he’d go by another. They’d lost him once, more than that if they were splitting hairs, and she planned on doing whatever she could to make sure it wouldn’t ever happen again.

“Olivia? I kind of like it,” William replied, nodding as he mulled it over in his head. He waited for the tickle of recognition again and was almost disappointed when it didn’t happen. Maybe he’d imagined it the first time, he figured, but either way he felt the baby’s slight weight in his arms and thought about how he felt more part of a family than he had in a long time. “Listen, there’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you guys about.”

Scully raised a hand to her chest where her cross necklace would’ve been, had they not insisted she remove it before taking her into surgery. She rubbed at the spot of her chest it would have rested instead, fearing whatever his next words might be. They’d settled into a good rhythm, she and Mulder and William, and now their new baby girl. She didn’t want to imagine what life might be like if he decided he no longer wanted what they had to offer. “What is it?”

“I’ve been thinking about getting my GED,” he said, forcing the words out before he changed his mind. “The past year or so hasn’t entirely made it easy for me to go to school. And, well, I don’t really know what I wanna do with my life or whatever, but I kinda figured that if I wanted to do anything past this point, I need to at least say I finished my classes.”

Scully released the breath she was holding, slowly moving her hand to rest back in her lap. Whatever she’d expected, it certainly hadn’t been that.

William shrugged, tucking his sister’s blanket tighter around her as she started to fuss. “I know it’s not exactly traditional, but--”

“Listen, Will, your mother and I? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we’re not exactly traditional people,” Mulder replied. “I think that’s a good idea.”

“Me too,” Scully said, reaching her arms out for the baby when she started to cry out again. “She’s probably hungry. Come here, little one.”

Carefully, William stood, shuffling over to place her in Scully’s arms. Maybe they weren’t traditional and maybe it didn’t always make sense, but when they all came together, it seemed like a good fit. He caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned his head to see Mulder pulling the new smartphone he’d bought a few weeks ago from his pocket. “Do you even know how to use that thing yet?”

“Yes,” Mulder replied, defiant as he tapped the screen to light it up. He swiped the screen, cursing as instead of pulling up the camera he opened an app that started playing music instead.

“You sure about that?” William asked, reaching out for the phone. “Just hand it here, I’ll show you.”

“Will one of you just figure it out?” Scully asked, realizing only afterwards how harsh her words sounded. “Sorry, but she’s hungry.”

“Ha! Never fear, Scully, I got it,” Mulder said, triumphantly raising the phone to capture a picture and then another, well aware of the way William was rolling his eyes as he did so, but finding he didn’t care. The younger man knew at least a fair portion of everything he and Scully fought through to get to this moment, so he wanted to capture it, knowing Scully would likely berate him later if he didn’t. The impromptu photo session was interrupted by a subtle gurgling sound. He tapped the screen to make it go dark before slipping his phone back into his pocket. “What was that?”

“That was you,” Scully said as she turned her head in William’s direction, fixing her face into a look of concern. “Did you spend the money he gave you on the flowers?”

William hung his head, knowing he’d been caught, but also finding he didn’t care, at least not really. “It’s remotely possible.”

Mulder clapped his hands together and rose from his position by the foot of the bed. “Come on, kid,” he said, pointing towards the door. “I saw a sign by the cafeteria that said today’s special is pizza. Are you down for a slice?”

“Oh yeah, totally” William replied sarcastically. He stood up, briefly stepping into Mulder’s space. “You can’t call me kid, you know, not when I’m taller than you.”

“Whatever you say,” Mulder replied, watching as William headed out the door. “I still can’t believe he’s taller than me, Scully. You two going to be okay for a bit while we head downstairs?”

She nodded as the baby turned her head towards her chest, her pink lips opening as she rooted around. “Yes,” Scully replied, thinking not just of the daughter nestled safely in her arms but also of Mulder and William, who was waiting down the hall. They’d made it here, in spite or perhaps because of everything thrown their way. No matter what happened in the coming days and weeks, she never wanted to lose sight of that. “We’re going to be just fine.”


End file.
